This junior high kid I taught a couple of years ago was reading 4 or 5 books (a lot of classic literature in there) a day...but a large percentage of those were NOT in her native language of Japanese. Very impressive imho

When I was in Jr. High School, the school made a contest to see who could read one million words (in books) per month for the entire year. It seemed a nice way to get young children to read. Unfortunately the school kept track of books through the ever so reliable honor system. I was a heavy reader compared to my colleges, and I read maybe 2 books a week if that, while other kids were reporting they read Erragon in a day, or something like that.

The fact that these kids aren't reading particularly sophisticated material isn't really important. The act of reading itself is preferable to sitting passively in front of a television. Nobody expects elementary school kids to read Tolstoy.

The fact that these kids aren't reading particularly sophisticated material isn't really important. The act of reading itself is preferable to sitting passively in front of a television. Nobody expects elementary school kids to read Tolstoy.